USNA FOIA Program

The Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. §552,was passed by Congress in 1966 to provide the public with a right of access to federal government records. The FOIA gives the public the right to request access to records of the Executive Branch of government and agencies are required to search for those requested records and then to provide copies to the requester unless the records contain information that is protected from mandatory disclosure.

The Privacy Act (PA) of 1974, 5 U.S.C. §552a, establishes a code of fair information practices that governs the collection, maintenance, use, and dissemination of information about individuals that is maintained in systems of records by federal agencies. The Privacy Act requires that agencies give the public notice of their systems of records by publication in the Federal Register. The Privacy Act prohibits the disclosure of a record about an individual from a system of records absent the written consent of the individual, unless the disclosure is pursuant to one of twelve statutory exceptions.